Moon Handbooks Havana (Paperback)

by Christopher P. Baker (Author) "Contrary to popular belief, U.S. law does not prohibit U.S. citizens from visiting Cuba..." (more)
Key Phrases: criollo fare, licensed travelers, private room rentals, Habana Vieja, United States, Centro Habana (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Although about half a dozen guidebooks have been written on Cuba, none is as comprehensive, informative, and readable as Baker's welcome addition."

Product Description
From a night at the high-octane Tropicana nightclub, to touring the Havana's monuments to the Revolution, to visiting Hemingway's Havana hangouts, travelers looking for more than the standard itinerary will find many unique options in this updated guide. Author Christopher P. Baker, a well-respected and best-selling authority on travel to Cuba and Latin America, presents everything a traveler needs to know when heading to Havana. This guide is packed with comprehensive information on accommodations, dining, sights, and recreation, covering a wide range of budgets and personal interests. Filled with color photographs, custom maps, witty sidebars, current guidelines for legal travel, and a complete coverage of the city's complex history, the second edition of Moon Handbooks Havana is the most comprehensive resource for travelers to this popular travel destination.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing; 2nd edition (June 16, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566915112
• ISBN-13: 978-1566915113
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #313,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars in depth guide to a wonderful place without many signs!, July 11, 2000

By	Barnaby Dorfman (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Moon Handbooks: Havana (1st Ed.) (Paperback)

Havana is a fantastic city with wonderful people living through a very difficult economic period. Existing outside the world of international chains and franchises, travelers cannot rely on the normal signposts, advertisements, and guides to help them find even the most basic services. Christopher Baker's book is a great resrouce to anyone travelling to this incredible place. He packs in not only information on where to stay and eat, but also explains a myriad of subtleties that are not immedately apparant. As a bonus, his book also provides much in the way of background on the history and culture of Havana. If you are considering a trip to Cuba, don't go without this book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Travel with Chris, December 29, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Moon Handbooks: Havana (1st Ed.) (Paperback)

I spent a month in Cuba guided by this book. Not only does it have great information for the essential activities like eating and sleeping, but it has an incredible amount of information about the country. If you find yourself without a book to read while traveling, Chris' guide book is great for educational reading material - packed with historical and cultural reading. At first I scoffed at his tendency to flowery writing - "with water as warm as bedtime milk" but after growing accostomed to his style we began to think of Chris as our travel buddy and the other travel books brought by my travel partners were soon buried deep in backpacks - Chris' book was the only one we needed.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you are going to visit JUST Havana, get this guide., July 31, 2001

By	Allan M. Gathercoal "fdoamerica" (Norcross, GA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Moon Handbooks: Havana (1st Ed.) (Paperback)

When I was in Havana (3/2001) I brought a stack of guide books to help me navigate around Cuba (and especially Havana). The top award goes to the prolific author Christopher Baker, who wrote "Havana Handbook" and "Cuba" (both are published by Avalon Travel).

In Havana Handbook Christopher Baker gives you a solid introduction to Havana and Cuba, a good, but basic, general travel information section. His two books have the best accommodations, restaurants and sights-to-see reviews and recommendations available today. He also provides excellent tables & lists of pertinent subjects, good black & white photos, scores of side bar topics that are full of informative caveats, and the beginning of web site and Internet addresses.

The only improvement I can recommend to Avalon Travel and Christopher Baker (are you listening?) would be more, much more, email addresses (especially for the hotels) additional online sources and additional maps (i.e., Baker recommends three great walking tours through Havana and these need maps). However, I have reviewed other Moon Handbooks and the Havana Handbook's maps and scattered inclusions of online resources are a real improvement over other Moon Handbooks.

So, if you are going to visit JUST Havana, and you don't want to cart around Christopher Baker's definitive, 827 page "Cuba" (Highly Recommended - see review), then this 368-page guidebook is very good and reliable choice. BUT, for three dollars more I would buy Christopher Baker's "Cuba". Regardless Christopher Baker has written a tour guide unmatched by any other Cuba guide book. Recommended